Gaylord Hardwood Flooring

This blog will go over every step you need to know when purchasing hardwood flooring for your condo, or anywhere with a concrete subfloor. Compared to single family homes, condo buildings require much more organization and scheduling. Some steps can be missed, causing all sorts of headaches. Read carefully, or watch our video!

Step 1: Understand your condo rules

Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

Does your condo have restrictions to the tools used? If so, cutting in the parking lot could add hours to the job.

What are your condo's sound restrictions? If so, you must look at the subfloor rating.

Does your condo allow delivery up the main elevator? Do you need to reserve it for delivery?

Step 2: Book your condo elevator and understand what's needed for the delivery

You'll want to book the elevator for a slightly longer than the expected time frame, just in case. Additionally, you will want to consider what kind of space your elevator can take. Most, lower quality, engineered floors come in lengths up to 6 feet. If your elevator can only take lengths up to 8 feet, you will want to know this prior to ordering. Our engineered comes in lengths up to 12 feet, so this step is super important.

Step 3: Book your delivery

We offer two types of delivery to condos:

Delivery into your condo

Delivery to the elevator holding area.

Step 4: Understand your subfloor and sound barrier

Concrete slabs absorb airborne and structural sound waves causing them to spread, multiply, and echo. A sound barrier will be needed for under your flooring. This is where you will need to check with your condo board to know what's required for a sound barrier.

The sound barrier can be in the form of an underlayment, or a glue. If you are using a glue, you will need to use the proper trowel and amount of adhesive.

Step 4: Select your installation method

There are three options to install your engineered hardwood flooring over concrete floor.

Full Glue Down Engineered Installation

Double Glue Down Engineered Installation

Edge Glue Engineered Installation

Full Glue Down Engineered Installation

The full glue down method is where the engineered hardwood flooring is directly glued on the concrete using an approved sound barrier glue.

Positives and Negatives

Takes longer than a floating application

More difficult to replace a board.

Less likely to squeak.

Double Glue Down Engineered Installation

The double glue down method is where the underlayment is glued to the concrete floor, followed by the engineered hardwood flooring being glued to the underlayment.

Positives and Negatives

Takes longer than a floating application

More difficult to replace a board.

Less likely to squeak.

Edge Glue Engineered Floating Installation

The edge glue method is where the engineered flooring is glued on the tongue and groove, floating entirely over an acoustic underlayment.

Squeaks are a common issue with hardwood flooring and have a number of causes.Squeaks can occur between the hardwood flooring and the subfloor or even between the subfloor and the floor joists.Solid wood floor joists can shrink ¼”.If the subfloor isn’t glued properly to the floor joist, it can create a gap between the subfloor and the floor joist and cause a squeak.

Herringbone hardwood flooring has been popular for hundreds, if not thousands of years. They can be found in castles throughout Europe and luxury homes across North America. A herringbone installation provides a client’s home with a unique, traditional look.

At Gaylord hardwood flooring, we offer some very beautiful exotic wood species. We have experimented in manufacturing over 20 species of wood from all over the world. However, we have found that most foreign species do not hold up well in our dry environment and we have settled on only 4 species we are comfortable selling. Jatoba, Tigerwood, Cumaru, and Sucupira. All of these species are from Brazil and purchased from mills that practice sustainable harvesting.

Jatoba

Jatoba is also known as Brazilian Cherry and is probably one of the most commonly used exotic species in hardwood flooring. Jatoba has similar looking characteristics to that of our domestic cherry, but is much harder. In fact, it is 81% harder than red oak. It has a slight red tinge which deepens to a deep red when the wood is fully matured.

Tigerwood

Tigerwood is a very unique looking wood that isn’t for the faint of heart. The sapwood of Tigerwood is a brownish white to dirty gray colour, while the heartwood is reddish brown to light golden brown. The species has a very unique wavy, interlocked, irregular grain. It darkens and becomes richer with age. It is roughly 30% harder than red oak.

Sucupira

Sucupira is also known as Brazillian wild walnut. While most of the other Brazilian woods have red undertones, the sucupira is browner making it very popular for clients trying to avoid having red in their floor. It has a very unique grain pattern and some beautiful colour variation. It is softer than the other exotic woods but is roughly the same hardness as hickory which is the hardest North American wood we offer.

Cumaru

Cumaru is also known as Brazillian teak. The cumaru ranges in colour from a light brown to a dark brown with a slight red tinge. It has a nice amount of colour variation; it is less subtle than tigerwood and a little bit more varied than jatoba. It is 2.75 times harder than red oak.

Because these woods are so naturally beautiful, we typically don’t put a stain on them. Since the exotic woods are so dense they are very durable and hold up well in a busy household. If we finish these floors natural, you will be less likely to see gaps between the boards if they occur in the winter months because it is the natural wood all the way through. If you have any questions about our exotic hardwood floors, don’t hesitate to contact us.

Is acclimation a myth?

When asking about a hardwood flooring delivery, you’ve probably had someone tell you “the wood must sit in the home for two weeks to acclimatize”. This is an old myth from the days when wood wasn’t properly kiln dried. The wood would need to sit in the home in order to actually dry out. Hardwood lumber is now properly kiln dried this is not required.

The Problems with Acclimating Wood Flooring

In most cases this would do more harm than good. For instance, consider the example of a new home. There are thousands of gallons of excess water in the home. The hardwood flooring delivered will be the driest material on site and will absorb the moisture like a sponge. After absorbing moisture the wood will expand. If it is installed at a high moisture level, when the home adjusts to normal living conditions there will be significant gapping throughout. See gapping picture on the left.

Acclimation in Dry Conditions

The opposite will be true if the flooring has been acclimated in an environment that is too dry. It will absorb moisture in normal living conditions and permanently cup. Since each individual board has a different grain pattern, it will expand and contract in different ways, creating width variations. So you may have one end of the board that is bigger than the other making it very difficult to install, especially in wider boards.

How Width Variation Occurs

Here are two boards from the same batch of wood that have been acclimated in the wrong environment

Gaylord Hardwood Flooring is dried between 6-8% making it ideal for normal living conditions so in most cases it doesn’t need to acclimate at all.

We often have clients asking about oil finished hardwood flooring. Oil finishes have a very lower sheen providing a natural look that is extremely popular. Oil finish flooring is marketed as a very forgiving, low maintenance options. The fact is, oiled finished hardwood floors are very high maintenance.

How to get an "Oil Finish" without the maintenance

At Gaylord Hardwood Flooring, we offer many options that will give you the appearance of an oiled hardwood flooring, but without all of the maintenance. Our finish consists of 10-coats of polyurethane, enhanced with titanium oxide, that has a 40-year finish warranty. Meaning; our finish will not wear through for 40 years, and we guarantee it. Some companies selling oil finished hardwood floors offer a "lifetime guarantee", but then go on to say the floors need to re-oiled periodically. This statement would be like us saying "you have a lifetime finish warranty, but need to have it refinished every few years". Does that make any sense? Nobody wants to move all of their furniture out and oil or refinish a hardwood floor. Hence why we put on a finish that lasts.

How easy it is to repair our prefinished matte and distressed floors

Another sales pitch from companies that sell oiled hardwood flooring is the idea it is "easy to repair". I can assure you, our matte finishes are much easier to correct. You can easily rub some stain on the scratch, and you won't be able to notice it any longer. Take a look at the video below for some proof.

Oil finished flooring can change color

We are always matching to oil finish samples. There are many beautiful oil finish colors available. However, they will not always look that way. Over only two years, I witness a costly oil finish floor go from two-toned grey to dark brown due to foot traffic. Some of the low traffic areas, near the walls, are still grey, but the high traffic areas are dark brown. When we match to an oil finish sample for a client, it ensures they get the same look and feel, but the stain color is permanent. Clients always breathe a sigh of relief when they select the perfect stain color. It would be very disheartening to see your beautiful hardwood flooring change to a different color.

All wood floors have one thing in common. They are only as good as the subfloor beneath them. Everything in your home interacts with your subfloor so making the right choice has a long term effect. Just because subfloors are not visible that doesn’t make them not important.

“Thanks so much for the invitation to visit your showroom recently. Congratulations on your 25th anniversary and on the beautiful showroom. The renovated space is an informative and inspirational showcase for all your products. I’m sure visitors will find the room vignettes very helpful when it comes to making a decision about flooring. Choosing flooring is like choosing stone for a countertop – you need to see more than just a small sample to fully appreciate the product. Seeing the product installed underfoot is truly the best way to shop for flooring. The installations show the variations in the grains of the woods and the great number of finish options. I also like the way the wall colours, mouldings, furniture and styling of each vignette help visitors visualize how each type of flooring works with various decorating and architectural styles. You’ve truly managed to maximize all of your square footage. I am amazed at the quality and breadth of your products and look forward to working with you in the future for stories in STYLE AT HOME.”

One of our specialties at Gaylord Hardwood Flooring is our Wide Plank Flooring. We offer planks up to 11.5" wide. Although these boards are sawn to be extremely stable, they still require more than your traditional hardwood flooring installation.

Things to consider when installing wide plank flooring

If you think about it, a 2 1/4" floor will take 5 times more nails than an 11.5" floor.

In order to make up for the lack of nails, we put a bead of eurethane based adhesive every 36" for 5 and 6 inch boards.

For boards wider than 6" we put the bead of glue, every 18 inches.

This installation method is very important in wide plank floors, in order to prevent squeeks. One of the keys is to use an adhesive that allows the wood to move freely, and doesn't restrict it in any way.

Cupping hardwood flooring

Engineered Hardwood Flooring: What is the optimal thickness and ratio?

Engineered hardwood flooring can be very confusing. This video outlines what makes a high quality engineered hardwood floor. Gregory Gaylord will describe the pros and cons of several engineered hardwood flooring options.

Gaylord Hardwood Flooring uses an engineered that is 3/4" thick, with a wear layer of 3/16”. The wear layer is above an 11-ply construction that makes our engineered hardwood flooring 5x more stable than hardwood flooring. For more information on our hardwood flooring, check out our YouTube video series.

"Just a quick note to commend you and your staff for the excellence of your showrooms, products and customer service. We found your staff to be courteous, friendly and helpful and they helped make our choice of flooring easy. The quality of the flooring is excellent and there was almost no waste when I laid it. The boards were all of uniform dimensions and almost completely flawless. I have laid other hardwood flooring and the difference in quality and uniformity made the job so much easier this time. The finished product looks excellent especially considering the fact that this is an old farmhouse and there isn't a flat or level floor in the place! Again, congratulations to your company for an excellent product and service. I will certainly be recommending Gaylord to anyone who is thinking of hardwood flooring for their home."

Tape Is Kryptonite on Hardwood Flooring

In the past few years we have experienced issues with painters tape removing the finish from hardwood flooring. This isn’t something that only occurs with our finish but is a problem across the entire industry. More and more manufacturers are adding this as an exclusion in their warranty.

With hardwood floor finishes being so durable, you have to wonder how this could possibly happen from something as harmless as painters tape. It is actually the chemical resins in the tape used to prevent it from drying out that causes this to happen. These chemicals are trapped under the tape and will eat away at the finish over time. The longer the tape in on the floor, the more likely it will be to cause problems.

Where we see this happen most often is on the flooring near stair nosings or other transition pieces. These areas are prone to this for two reasons. #1 at a nosing or transition piece you have people stepping on the tape constantly, further pushing the chemicals into the finish. The second reason is that these are often pieces that have been ripped along the sides or cut at the ends. Since the surface isn’t entirely sealed, the chemicals are able to get in under the finish which causes the most damage.

Some brands of painter’s tape are safe on hardwood flooring but only for a short period of time. Say 24-48 hours or so. Typically, when someone puts tape on their hardwood floor to install protective paper, it is on the flooring for far longer than 48 hours. The safest way to prevent this problem is to avoid putting tape on the hardwood flooring altogether. If you are installing protective paper or something similar to prevent damage, be sure to tape the paper together and not directly to the hardwood flooring.

Why We Love Selling Wide Plank White Oak Hardwood Flooring

When we tell people we manufacture and sell solid hardwood flooring up to 11.5” wide, they look at us like we are crazy, especially if they are in the flooring industry. To most people, the wider the board the more likely you are to have problems with cupping, gaps, etc. We can happily say that our wide plank live sawn white oak is our most trouble free hardwood flooring option, and the one where we receive the fewest complaints.

The live sawn method of sawing the boards makes it incredibly stable, minimizing cupping, gaps, and squeaks if installed properly. Of course, all of these problems can occur in environments with extreme humidity fluctuations but happens significantly less than other hardwood flooring options.

Because of the rustic look and texture of most live sawn floors you hardly notice cupping if it does occur. When you have a hardwood floor with a smooth finish and a high gloss, especially in a dark floor, even the slightest cupping is very noticeable. This makes the live sawn white oak an ideal hardwood flooring option for a cottage environment which will have more relative humidity fluctuations than a normal home.

In an extremely dry environment, even hardwood floors as stable as our live sawn white oak can shrink. In a rustic wide plank hardwood floor, gaps are almost expected and really don’t take away from the overall look and appeal of the floor. In a traditional hardwood floor, especially one with a dark stain, gaps in the floor are magnified. This is especially true with very light woods like maple, hickory, and ash. If the flooring has a stain, the tongues on the boards are still white and when the wood shrinks, this white tongue is exposed. This isn’t an issue with natural floors but very noticeable when the wood is stained.

Another reason we have so few complaints with our wide plank live sawn white oak is because of its rustic appearance. Clients buying this floor are expecting a lot of character and not a perfect floor. Wood is a natural product and there is no such thing as a perfect floor. If a live sawn white oak floor gets dented or scratched, it adds to the character and charm of the floor. On a standard hardwood floor with a perfectly smooth finish, these same dents take away from the look of the floor and are considered by most clients to be an issue requiring repair. These dents and scratches look especially bad on a floor with a dark stain and a higher gloss finish. So there you have it, those are the reasons why I would much prefer to sell someone wide plank live sawn white oak than any other floor. It makes the world a better place for everyone.

Me- I don’t receive complaints. People call to tell me how much they love their flooring which is very rewarding and music to my ears.

Builder- The builder doesn’t have to be as cautious when protecting the hardwood floor on the jobsite. With a standard hardwood floor, it is like everyone working in the home is walking on eggshells. Installer- The wide planks and long boards make the installation faster and easier. If the installer drops a tool on the floor or dents it somehow, it only adds to the look. Face nails can be used a little bit more in certain areas because when filled properly, they will rarely be noticed.

Homeowner- Any floor, no matter how hard the wood, is going to get dented and scratched. With our wide plank live sawn white oak, these dents either add to the look or can easily be touched up so they aren’t visible.

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You May Be Paying Way Too Much for Your Wide Plank Flooring

In his book “All Marketers are Liars,” Seth Godin describes and compares the Volkswagen Toureg to the Porsche Cayenne. He states that they are virtually the same care and are actually built in the very same factory. The Volkswagen is $36,000 and the Porsche is $80,000. The book was written in 2005 so I am sure those prices are different now but it is easy to understand the point he is trying to make. It is the same car but once is more than twice as expensive as the other.

Porsche Cayenne VS. Volkswagen Toureg

Why? Is it simply the name Porsche that causes people to spend the extra money? “I drive a Porsche” definitely sounds a little bit more prestigious than “That’s my VW” no matter how nice the vehicle is. Is it really worth paying twice as much for something just to get you from A to B? For many people the answer is yes, and I can’t say I blame them. If you have the money you can buy whatever vehicles you want. I’d potentially do the same assuming I didn’t work for my parents! This is a really interesting comparison and I’d like to take it a step further. What if the Volkswagen was actually better in all aspects? Handling, fuel mileage, longevity, features, appearance, comfort, etc. Would you still rather have the Porsche or is the Volkswagen looking like a much better option? This is the comparison we make to our biggest competitor in wide plank hardwood flooring. Our products are a lot alike in many ways. Our average board lengths in our wide plank hardwood flooring is 6-7’ and so is theirs. Our standard wide plank hardwood flooring offerings come in planks from 4” to 11.5” and so do theirs. There are however, two extremely important areas where we differ. One is our pricing, our wide plank flooring is typically under $15 per square foot and there options are typically well over $20 per square foot. Another huge difference is our finish. We offer 10 coats of polyurethane with titanium oxide and a 40 year warranty, their finish has a few coats of finish and no warranty. Yes, you read that right, people can pay 25-100% more money and get a finish with absolutely no warranty. Huh?

"We just had our hardwood floor installed and it looks beautiful. One of the major differences we see with our floor is the length of pieces. I would say that at least 20-30 per cent of each box contained full length pieces. This is a selling point with your firm and I am pleased to say that you were "true to your word". My wife and I have nothing but praise for young Drew Chadwick who installed our floor. First of all, Drew is a very polite and accommodating professional who would answer all our questions. Secondly, and most importantly, we had an issue with one of the floor joists being higher than the rest. This created a challenge for us and Drew called upon your expertise at your factory to arrive at a solution. It is this kind of thinking and support that results in both job and customer satisfaction. I would highly recommend Drew Chadwick for any future installations that you have. He will serve your company well."

Sometimes when clients visit our showroom looking to redo their floors, they do not always know where to begin. One of the questions they ask us is “What if the floor doesn’t match my furniture?” In a lot of home renovations or even new builds, a trend that is becoming more and more popular is for people to install hardwood throughout the entire home. This means not only will the flooring be a part of every room in the home, it will inevitably turn into a very important feature that can define the character and style represented in the home. This is why a high quality hardwood floor that will last over time is a big investment that requires careful selection.

Furthermore, once a client has decided they want to install hardwood throughout the entire home, it is a big decision seeing as once the floor is put down, it is much more difficult to replace, as opposed to switching it out like furniture. By keeping this in mind, clients should envision their new floor as a character defining feature and element they love. It should not just be seen as the finishing touch or accessory that brings the room together but more so like the canvas for the artwork. Investing the money in a good quality hardwood floor that has the right stain and finish for the project in question leaves the door open for limitless possibilities when designing the rest of the home.